A baby on the way for Hans and Courtney!
- 30 Sept 2020
Could the pitter-patter of tiny feet be close for our WA competitors? We caught up with Courtney to chat about what’s next, how she feels about the auction, and why The Block has been the hardest, and best, thing she and fiancé Hans have ever done...
Welcome to the world darling Ava!
"One week with our sweet Ava," the couple announced on their Instagram account on the 17th October 2020. So Sweet!
Photo courtesy of @courtneyandhans Instagram.
Exciting update Aug 2020 - Courtney and Hans are expecting a baby girl early October!!!!!
We have been lucky enough to be invited inside their stunning recent baby shower. I mean could they look any more gorgeous these two? "It was a beautiful party, the balloons were so OTT!!" Courtney tells Insider Style. Courtney has been lucky enough to have had a straightforward pregnancy "touchwood", helped by Courtney keeping active with "pilates four times a week and helping Hans with some of the renovating at my parent's house, no demo or heavy lifting though!!"
Courtney said, "it's been nice keeping the majority of the pregnancy on the down-low, and then having one big celebration at the end." We couldn't be happier for them and eagerly await the cute bundle to arrive next month - watch this space!
Congratulations Courtney and Hans x 
Thanks to Courtney for sharing these beautiful images with The Block Shop.
Let's take a trip down Memory Lane…remembering when these two were actually on The Block!
The auction’s just around the corner for you all now - we’re excited!
Oh God, really? I feel sick thinking about it.
Yeah, we’re hearing that a bit from the others...
Everyone always talks to you about ‘Auction, auction, apartment, apartment’, and you’re like, ‘Yeah - I just want to get through this week!’ We’re at the actual business end of it all - it's getting real.
Have you had good feedback from your real estate agent?
He’s really positive. He said he’s got a couple of potential buyers, people that are really keen. And I think he’s got some kind of online auction thing as well, that they can do. But I don’t believe anything until actual Auction Day. I don’t need people to blow smoke up my arse - I’m a realist. I don’t care how many people are interested - unless they’re there on Auction Day I don’t give a crap!
It’s almost impossible to say how it’s going to play out this year...
Yeah. It’s all going to be about reserves, really.
Let’s talk about that - you got $40k off yours. That’s huge! That must give you confidence…
Not really! I know $40,000 is a lot of money, but these are multi-million dollar apartments. In the past it might have really impacted the outcome, but I think when they’re quite expensive, high-end apartments, it’s going to be a drop in the ocean. Like, last year, people were being beaten by $150,000, so it hasn’t made me confident, that is for sure.
You guys got great feedback for your challenge apartment. As ‘Reno Rookies’, it must be nice to end this competition on that kind of high…
Yeah, it was definitely a really great way to finish. We started on a low, then we had a win first week, then it was kind of quiet, and then a win, and then last. So it was great to finish on a high with this. It’s the kind of apartment the judges really wanted everyone to do. They really wanted a bold, edgy, quirky, ‘St Kilda’ feel. When we did that in our apartment, the judges really loved that, and we won. But then, when we were plain and boring, they hated it. So, it was great to have the other teams try and do the style that the judges wanted us to do...
I still can’t believe someone’s going to win it!
I think it’s super cool. And I think if someone’s going to win it, it has to be really fun. It’s a high-end luxury apartment no matter what’s in there.
Let’s talk ‘real life’. Have you found it weird being back working as a flight attendant? Have any of your passengers recognised you?
Yeah, people have been recognising me on the plane. Luckily it’s always been good - no one’s tried to sledge me! People on the East Coast recognise me, and come up and have a photo - Melbourne has been next level! And I’m here now in Sydney, and it’s just been crazy; people yelling at us out of cars, saying, ‘Hey, Hans and Courtney!’ - it’s nuts.
Has all the positive feedback about your styling made you reconsider your career?
No way. Honestly, I am really happy with the job I’ve got - it’s a great job. It’s a job I can have until I am in a walker, pretty much. I love the people I work with, and it’s always different. And it’s a job that I feel good in. Whereas I don’t feel like I belong in that whole creative, interior design world. I mean, I definitely love my quirky, kooky little styling pieces, but who knows? Maybe I will just be on the hunt for ‘Courtney eclectic’ styling pieces to put on a website.
Well, there’s your name - ‘Courtney Eclectic’
There you go!
Looking back, what do you reckon your highs and lows were?
It was low towards the end there when we were running out of money, and I didn’t really have that creative freedom to go, ‘You know what? I want that artwork that is going to be $2k or $1k, or that awesome buffet to put in the hallway.’ I had to rely on sponsors, and as amazing as they are, it was kind of tough. So I felt like my creativity was kind of on a low, and I think we kind of checked out a little bit towards the end because we were like ‘Far out, we are so close to the end.’
Was the highlight the Challenge Apartment?
The highlight for us was definitely the Challenge Apartment. One, because we were coming towards the end. Two, because we were working with all of our mates, which we absolutely loved. Despite a couple of hiccups along the way, the majority of it was awesome. And of course, we took out two wins, and subsequently got $40k off our reserve. Does it get any better? If The Block was like that for 12 weeks, that would be insane!
If you had to pick a favourite room, which would it be?
I think my favourite room was the kitchen in the Challenge Apartment. We are so lucky we got to show off a new Caesarstone, which was so edgy and cool. And I loved my styling in the kitchen. I was nervous when we looked at the plans and saw we had all this open shelving. I was like, ‘Uh oh, what have we done?’ I panicked right before tool’s down - I bought so much stuff, and then I slowly brought it down from our apartment, and I was taking things and placing things. But then it started coming to life. And I think maybe one of the other teams, maybe Kerrie, or Bianca and Carla, were like, ‘Uh oh, When you started bringing in your styling pieces and putting them up in the shelves, we knew you had it in the bag.’
What a nice thing to hear!
Everything looked like it belonged, and I was like, ‘Oh my god, I actually did a really good job!' For the first time on The Block, I was actually really happy with my styling. Like, boom!
That’s the way you want it to be - to knock it out of the park in the final week…
Yeah, exactly!
So, back to reality - what’s next for you guys? Planning your wedding?
I think we definitely want to. But even before The Block, Hans and I had been looking at buying a place in Perth together. It’s all about finding the right place, though. So we are definitely, first and foremost, going to be finding that, then I guess, wedding plans.
Exciting times!
I think it’s going to happen in the next 12 months. I want to try and have a baby in the next year or two - I am 35 next year.
Looking back, would you say The Block has been a positive experience for you both?
I would say that The Block is a love/hate relationship! There are highs, and then there are really low lows. And you don’t have a lot of time to enjoy the highs, because you are on to the next room the next week. But, looking at our apartment, seeing what we have achieved, absolutely it was a positive experience.
Take a look back at Courtney and Han's apartment HERE
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